Justice League: New Blood
by CynderFanForever
Summary: The Justice League find themselves in the middle of a war with a team of supervillains who act as rogues toward members such as Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman. When Batgirl, Supergirl, Wonder Girl, and Nightwing find out who's behind it all, they are put into the fight of their lives, and find that the God of Fear has even more in store for them...especially Batgirl.
1. Watchtower

**Okay, people. This is my Justice League fanfic. This story has no continuity with the DCAU at all, and this is my own original story. Some character descriptions will come from the DCAU, but that'll be about it, though I imagine some characters with the same voice they had in the DCAU (such as Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, and Lex Luthor). This, I guess, is what you can call the "first season" of the Justice League: New Warriors series. Have a nice day!**

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><p><span><strong>CHAPTER ONE: WATCHTOWER<strong>

Batman was waiting for them. New recruits were coming to join the Justice League. The new recruits he knew included Supergirl, Superman's cousin, Dick Grayson, his first sidekick, also known as Nightwing, and Wonder Girl, Wonder Woman's sidekick.

Teleporters were bringing every one of them from Earth. Batman just hoped nothing went wrong during the next few days of training. He and Superman had learned of a new team of villains coming after them, and they knew to be cautious and to not underestimate the team.

The first teleportation device began to whirr, allowing Batman to know it was working. A flash of light entered the tube, and when it cleared, Batman saw Supergirl standing there, wearing her red-and-blue costume complete with a long-sleeved top that exposed her midriff and a miniskirt, as well as knee-high red boots. She left the tube and came to stand next to Batman.

"Good day," she greeted. "How're things going in Gotham?"

"Good," he replied briskly. "Your cousin is in the control room. He said he wants to speak with you."

"I'll just remain here for now," Supergirl told him. "Cassie and I spoke about meeting each other here last night." Batman knew she was talking about Wonder Girl. "By the way," she continued, "is there a reason you allowed your first sidekick to join the team but not Barbara? She deserves to be a part of this team, you know."

"She's already spoken to me about it," Batman told her. "But I'll tell you what I told her. She can't be on this team because she's needed in Gotham. If she joined, her father might begin to wonder where she might have gone."

"Oh Batman," Supergirl teased. "Sometimes, you just need to lighten up."

The teleporters whirred again, and this time Nightwing, wearing street clothes and in the civilian guise of Dick Grayson, with a duffel bag hanging on his shoulder, appeared, as did Wonder Girl in her civilian guise of Cassie Sandmark.

"Hey Batman," Dick called to him, smirking. "I see you're still not smiling. How're things going for you?"

"Good," Batman replied to him.

Dick looked to Supergirl and smiled. "I can see he's still quite salty," he said to her. She just giggled.

Batman saw Cassie make her way to a place behind him. Turning around, he found her hugging Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman saw Batman and smiled at him. She saw Dick and Supergirl, returning the same smile to them.

Batman was about to speak when he heard the teleporters whirring again. He whirled around, not knowing the reason behind the teleporters working again.

Wonder Woman walked over to him. "Did you know anything about this?" Batman asked her.

"Sort of," was all she said.

There was the flash of light, and when it cleared, Batman saw Barbara Gordon standing there, smiling brightly.

"What in the name of God is she doing here?" Dick whispered behind.

Batman's expression became that of surprise. Barbara was one of Batman's sidekicks, Batgirl. To see her in the Watchtower caused him to think.

Her long red hair flowed on her shoulders and her back. A duffel bag hung over her left shoulder, and a purse over her right. Her baby-blue eyes sparkled. She wore a night-black shirt and a dark blue skirt.

As she came out of the teleporter, she flashed a smile at Batman. "Miss me?" she asked.

"What are you doing here?" Batman asked her.

"I was told by a specific someone that I could join the Justice League," she explained. "And don't worry about Tim. He's coming, too, but probably not until tonight. You know, he's wondering about what he should pack."

She walked over to Supergirl and hugged her. Ever since the Bat-family had teamed up with Superman and Supergirl against the Joker, Scarecrow, Lex Luthor, and Metallo, the two of them had become great friends.

As the girls left, Batman turned to Wonder Woman. "Did you have something to do with this?" he asked.

"Yes," she replied. "But I wasn't the only one."

"Who else was in on this?" he demanded.

"Superman and the Flash," she replied. "Just deal with it. Besides, you know you like it. She was so excited when she found she could join! You should be so happy for her!"

Batman remained silent and turned away.

Meanwhile Barbara was unpacking her duffel bag into her dressers in her room. She'd learned from Superman that she would be sharing the room with Supergirl and Cassie Sandmark, who she later found out from Wonder Woman to be Wonder Girl.

"So how does it feel?" Supergirl asked her. "To be part of the Justice League, I mean." She was smiling brightly.

"Great," Barbara replied. "Do you know if we have any missions to do or something like that? I would love to just hang out with you soon."

"There'll be plenty of time for that," Supergirl told her. "We'll probably just be training for a small while, and then when we're ready, we'll be able to go on our own adventures. It'll be so fun! And yeah, let's talk about all that's happened tonight. We might have dinner or something, so it'd be the best time then."

Barbara was about to open her mouth again, but then there was a knock on the metallic door that acted as both the entrance and the exit for the room. Barbara knew only she, Supergirl, and the other girl, Cassie, could get into the room, as they'd been given the keycards ahead of time by Wonder Woman and Superman.

Barbara opened the doors and found Superman standing there. He was smiling at them in a very good-mannered way.

"Hello, ladies," he greeted. "How did Bruce take it when you appeared, Barbara?"

"He didn't take it the best," Barbara replied. "I will probably be taking a lot from him in a few minutes. But I don't care too much. Since you gave me and okay, and since Wonder Woman did it, as well, not of it is my fault. Of course, none of it is your fault, either."

"I understand," Superman said. "I'll talk to him…" Someone cleared their throat behind him, cutting him off. Superman turned around to see Batman. "…Later," he finished.

"I need to speak with Barbara," Batman told him. He looked to her. "Meet me in the control room. You'll know where it is."

As he walked off, Cassie came into their line of vision. Wonder Woman stood next to her. "Excuse me, is this room 212B?" she asked. "I'm sorry, I'm nervous, and I get lost a little too easily." She laughed nervously.

"Yes, this is the right room," Wonder Woman told her. "Barbara, if you wish, I can take you to the control room."

"I'll come too," Superman said. He looked to Supergirl. "I'll be back soon, Kara."

Barbara, Superman, and Wonder Woman left the room, leaving Kara and Cassie.

As they made their way to the control room, Wonder Woman put her hand on Barbara's shoulder. "Don't worry, Barbara," she assured. "You've done nothing wrong."

"I know," Barbara admitted. "If you ask me, this is the perfect time for something like this. Now we'll all be able to be more of a family."

When they reached the control room and entered, Batman and Dick were waiting on them. Dick flashed a smile at Barbara, but she could tell he was still surprised at the fact she'd come without telling him.

After the doors closed, Batman looked to her.

"What are you doing here?" he asked solemnly.

"I was told I could come," she replied. "Superman, Wonder Woman, and the Flash said I could. And as I said before, Tim is coming tonight. The city can do without us for one night, if you ask me. None of our enemies are around, Bruce. Joker and Scarecrow have pretty much gone off the map."

"It doesn't matter…" Batman began, but he was cut off by Barbara.

"Yes, you're wondering about my dad! I'm 21 years old now, Bruce! You can't keep me stuck there in Gotham forever! I love it there, but I wanted to do something new, and this came to mind!" Barbara explained. "I should be allowed! I mean, Dick was allowed by you! Why shouldn't I?"

Batman opened his mouth, but he was cut off by Wonder Woman.

"She's right, Bruce," Wonder Woman told him. "She is able to be here. She has proven herself worthy, if you ask me."

"I agree," Superman said. "Let her stay at least for the training. If she hasn't proven herself worthy to you then, then you can decide. What do you say to that, Barbara?"

"I think it's fine," Barbara said. "Just deal with it, Bruce. We're a team. No, we're more than just a team. Me, you, Dick, Tim…we're much more than just a team…we're a family. If you can't accept that, then something's wrong with you."

Batman finally nodded. "Fine," he said. "We'll see."

Then he walked out of the room, leaving the others to watch and wonder.


	2. A Short Talk

**CHAPTER TWO: A SHORT TALK**

An hour later, Barbara found herself in her room. She took her Batgirl costume out of her duffel bag and laid it on her bed. She surveyed it and noticed the tear in the left arm. She still remembered where the tear had come from.

During the last fight against Scarecrow, he'd injected her with his fear toxin. However, she'd taken the antidote beforehand. In anger, he had started beating her, but he was stopped by the timely arrival of Batman and Robin. In the process, the tear had formed.

That had been two weeks ago. Scarecrow had gone missing, it seemed, as had the Joker and Bane. With all three missing, Batgirl felt something was wrong.

The door opened, and Kara entered. She gave a smile to Barbara. The two had become the best of friends after teaming up and constantly talked to one another on the phone. But now, it seemed they would be able to talk to one another much more frequently.

"Hey," Kara greeted. "How's everything going?"

"Good," Barbara replied. "Of course, Bruce is still quite angry at me for coming here. I think he should be happy I'm trying something new. I know my dad wouldn't be the happiest if he knew what I've been doing for the past five years, but I just wanted to become Batgirl, and now I'm here at this place. I want to be able to be my own kind of person. And plus, my father doesn't check on me too much anymore. He knows I'm a grown woman, and that I can make my own decisions. And we have service even up here in space, it seems, so I can call him." She laughed at the last part.

"I agree with you, Barbara," Kara told her. "I know Bruce will come around soon. You just need to keep hoping that things will turn around. I don't have much experience on this sort of matter, but ah well, I can try to help one of my greatest friends, now can't I?" She looked behind Barbara and saw her costume, as well as the tear. "What happened to your costume?"

"A fight with Scarecrow," Barbara answered. "I was being beaten, but not severely. He'd just caught me off-guard, and one of the claw-like syringes he has on his left hand ripped it. But I'm okay."

"That's good. I know what it feels like to be beaten. You remember Metallo, of course. Before we met you guys—at least, before _I_ met you guys—I had infiltrated Lexcorp. Metallo had been hired by Lex Luthor, and unfortunately, he found me. He beat me until I was bleeding, actually. But he was stopped by Luthor, who wanted me alive."

"That's got to hurt," Barbara said. "How did Clark find you?"

"He's the one who sent me to Lexcorp, but he hadn't known Lex would be there, and he definitely didn't know Metallo would be there. He came and found me being held in a red sun radiation cell. He was able to rip out the source of the red sun radiation and stop it so he could rescue me. After that, we found ourselves cornered by Metallo, but Lois Lane found us and saved us. As you can remember, she gets herself into trouble quite a bit. But she saved us that day, and both Superman and I are in her debt for that."

"What about Lex? How'd you stop him?" Barbara asked.

"He…escaped before we could get to him," Kara said solemnly. "We haven't seen him since."

Barbara thought something sounded similar. She started thinking, and suddenly her eyes widened.

"We need to find Superman," she said. "There is a possibility that I know what could be happening."

Barbara ran out of the room. She turned back to Kara. "Do you know where your cousin is?" she asked.

Kara shrugged. "I'm not sure. He was in the control room, but I don't know if he's there now."

They went down a few halls before finally finding Superman talking to the Flash. When he saw them, a serious expression developed upon his face.

"What is it?" he asked.

"We need to talk to you guys," Kara said. "It has something to do with Lex Luthor."

Superman looked back to the Flash. "I'll resume speaking with you later," he said.

Flash nodded and then smiled at the girls.

As they left, Superman turned to Barbara.

"How do you know something is wrong?" he asked.

"I'm just that sort of a person," Barbara replied. "I've been able to tell when something is wrong and when someone might be in trouble. A lot of this stuff happens to me, and I hate it a lot. But I have a feeling now about Lex Luthor. Kara told me about your last fight with him and Metallo, and when she told me that he'd escaped, I began to wonder."

"What exactly do you mean?" Superman asked.

"What if he went somewhere else that's not in Metropolis? What if he went to some sort of hideout?" Barbara suggested.

Superman's eyes widened. "So you're saying he might have joined with some team to take the Justice League down?" he asked.

"Possibly," Barbara answered. "That's just my guess. If you can, please ask Bruce about it. I wish I could be a little more sure, but it's kind of hard in a time like this, if you know what I mean. I have a lot on my mind right now."

"I understand," Superman told her. He looked over to Supergirl, who seemed to be thinking about something. "Kara, what is it? What's on your mind?"

"Something just feels real weird," she said. "And it all comes back to what Barbara just said. You see, just before I was teleported up here to the Watchtower, this sickening feeling suddenly came over me, and at first I didn't understand it. But now that I think of it, it seems real familiar…and in a bad way."

"What did it feel like?" Barbara asked.

"It felt…like Kryptonite."


	3. Legion

**CHAPTER THREE: LEGION**

Lex Luthor made his way through the gates. The building in front of him had been standing for a long time, but it had been renovated quite recently.

A man was waiting for him at the entrance. Lex recognized him by his ruby-red lips and green hair, as well as his evil smile. The Joker smiled in an insane way as he saw him.

"Hello, Lexy!" Joker greeted, waving his right hand above his head wildly. "Our leader's been waiting for you. It's best you come inside right now."

"What, he can't wait longer?" Lex snapped. "Is there a reason he can't be patient for once in his life?"

"It's not easy for him, all those years in Arkham. Poor man," Joker said solemnly, and then laughed like a madman, which, in truth, he was.

As they entered, they encountered the antagonists of the many superheroes that were members of the Justice League. They included: Black Manta, Metallo, Captain Cold, Professor Zoom, Ares, Killer Croc, Harley Quinn, and Star Sapphire.

They all followed Lex and the Joker into their main meeting room. Their leader set in a throne made completely of stone.

"What took you so long?" he rasped. "Do you know how much I hate waiting? All my patience is gone, Joker! Don't you dare give me crap such as, 'Oh, we were just having a laugh.' No!" He slammed his fist down. "I've been waiting for so long, and now you all are here. It's good to see everyone. Please, take a seat at the table in front of you."

The glossy wooden table had many seats, at least over a hundred. Joker and the others took their seats, with Joker and Luthor taking their seats near the front.

"So what is your plan?" Luthor asked.

"We must keep the Justice League real busy for the next few days," their leader explained. "To do this, I've assembled all of you. Each one of you has done something to the hero you are the antagonist of. I have a very special plan in store for Batman. It will make me very happy once I have finished. Of course, I want to fight someone else in the Bat-family, and that would be Batgirl. You see, I believe I might have formed an enmity between her and I, which started after I beat her once. She deserved the beating, most definitely. Batman stopped me, but I will win the next time we battle. I will stop here for right now. Do any of you have any questions?"

"I do," Luthor said. "How exactly do you plan to take down all members of the Bat-family? If you remember, they all beat you in a fight a little while ago."

"Yes, well, I'd been fighting Nightwing _and _Batman, Batgirl, _and _Robin," the leader protested. "I could have won, but there were four of them, and that posed a big problem. But let's move on, shall we? Back to Batgirl. Yes. She will die before her next birthday!" He slammed his fist down again in anger. "I've waited too long to have my plans foiled! I deserve my shot to kill whomever I wish to. But back to all of you. I will assign you whoever you will be battling. Of course, some of you already know. Lexy, you and Metallo will be together once more. But I'll be coming along, too. I have a good plan to take down Superman's little girl. And no, I do not mean Lois Lane. I mean his cousin. As for the Flash, Professor Zoom will be the only one going after him. Captain Cold, I know you wish to fight your other friend, but I need you to fight someone else."

"And who would this be?" Captain Cold snorted.

"You will help Ares against Wonder Woman and her little girl," the leader said. "It's better if you take down the little girl and try not to go up against Wonder Woman yourself, unless you really must. I'm unsure of your true prowess. The Green Lantern has Star Sapphire to go up against, and let me see, who should I make go with him…I'm not sure." He scratched his chin. "Oh dear."

"How about Harley?" Joker suggested, pointing to his girlfriend, who was dressed in her harlequin costume with her makeup fully on already. She looked over to him with a shocked look on her face.

"No," the leader said briskly. "Killer Croc, you are up. Go with Star Sapphire when we tell you to. And there's one big reason for that. A reason for why I don't want you in Gotham. But I'll go on to that much later." He turned to Black Manta. "You are going to take down Aquaman. Understand me?" Black Manta nodded. "Good. You see, the best thing to do is exhaust your hero in some way. I have a very specific way of doing such a thing, and it's quite fun to see them squirm around, helpless, screaming out for it to stop. It makes me happy. It gives me a reason to keep living, no matter how long I've stayed locked up in a hellhole like Arkahm Asylum. This is the chance for some of you to kill your worst enemies, those who have stopped you from doing what you wish to do most! Now is your chance, and I am leaving it wide open for many of you! THIS IS WHERE YOU WILL FIND YOUR TRUE DESTINY!" He threw back his head and cackled. "Now, does anyone have anything to say?"

"Yes," said Killer Frost from far in the back. "Is there something I can do?"

"Sure. You and Merlyn can take Green Arrow and Black Canary down. I would like you to take down Flash, but it won't exactly work for now. But it depends. Maybe one of you will be injured or defeated. I'll switch you around if that sort of a thing happens. But make sure IT DOESN'T HAPPEN!"

"Sounds good to me," Killer Frost said, now smiling.

"So, is there anything else someone might wish to talk about?"

"I do," Metallo volunteered. "Who will get the chance to kill Superman? Me or Luthor?"

"Luthor," the leader said. "But you can kill Supergirl if you wish."

"That's true. I watched her be teleported up to wherever the Justice League use as a base," Metallo said. "Oh, this is going to be fun." He laughed.

"So, what is your story?" Killer Frost finally asked the leader. "Surely you have a backstory that we should all know about, wouldn't you agree?"

The leader shuffled his position on his throne. He looked over to the wall next to him. A scythe was hanging there, and that scythe was one of his two main weapons.

"Fine," he said. "I'll tell you. I started out as a murderer. Some believe I was a psychiatrist. But in truth, I killed a psychiatrist and took his work. I don't think even Batman knows the truth. I mean, I fit the role because I was already quite smart and understood science. So I continued for many years developing this toxin that would give people nightmares, and it worked! Then my insanity shone through my 'work,' and I became who I am today. Of course, there is one more thing…" He scraped the scythe along the ground. He saw Professor Zoom and Joker talking to one another. Though he knew Joker was listening, Zoom was the one being rude. He could tell by the annoyed expression on Joker's face. "So you wish to know what happened to me afterward? Well, I'll show you!"

He picked up the scythe and slammed it down in between the outstretched fingers of Zoom's right hand. Now everyone could see what had happened to their leader, how disfigured he truly was.

His mask had been torn up, and now it almost resembled that of a Grim Reaper-like face. It could be seen that he was partially blind in his right eye. Through a tear in the mask, it could be seen he had no lips, and it was obvious part of his nose was missing. His chest and torso were covered in scars and partially-healed gashes.

"You see what has been done to me?" he asked. He looked down at his right hand. On the fingertips were five syringe-like needles, connected to tubes that seemed to be filled with some sort of toxin.

Scarecrow looked back up at his followers. "I have been planning this all out for a long time, and I will not fail!" He went back to his throne and took out a pumpkin. "Let's say this pumpkin is one of you. Hm…let's say it's you, Thawne," he said to Zoom. "If you screw up, such as giving information to the Justice League or being beaten by the Justice League girls, knowing how stupid they all are, then…" He slashed the scythe through the pumpkin, slicing it in half. "There. Case closed. So now you all know what you should not do. Don't any of you screw with me!"

"Why?" came a voice. "What will happen to any of us if we mess up?"

Scarecrow looked forward and found someone dressed in vermin control gear, wearing a gas mask. Scarecrow recognized him as the Ratcatcher.

"Flannegan," he said. "I'm surprised to see you here."

"I'm surprised I would have ever come here," he said. "But it seemed too good an offer to pass up."

"Who invited you?"

"I did," the Joker said. "But the reason is one only you would know, Scarecrow."

Scarecrow seemed to smile underneath his mask. He walked over to Ratcatcher and asked him, "Tell me, Flannegan, what is your greatest fear?"

"I don't have one," he answered.

"Is that so? Hm, let's see about that." Scarecrow stabbed him in the chest with the needles on his right hand, injecting him with fear toxin.

At first Ratcatcher didn't seem to be affected by it. And then he cried out, yelling, "Please, father, no more! Please! PLEASE!"

Scarecrow now knew Ratcatcher's deepest fear was being beaten by his father. Taking this as his chance, he turned to the rest of the Legion of Doom. "This is what happens to those who oppose me! If you are like him, then you will die." He turned back to Ratcatcher. "And now for the finishing touch." He raised the scythe and slashed Ratcatcher's chest with it. Even despite the brown vermin gear, Scarecrow could see blood seeping through. Ratcatcher gasped and collapsed to the ground. "Somone take out the trash!"

As Ratcatcher's body was taken away, Scarecrow returned to his throne. "We are almost there, my friends. I can almost taste the victory in store for us if we just keep waiting! Don't lose hope, my friends, for if you do, you'll end up like that piece of crap! I have many plans set out for all of you, and I want them done quickly! But first, let me tell you a little story. You see, there was once this woman who was walking along the road at midnight. She knew how dangerous it truly was, but she didn't care. She felt she was on top of the world! She felt she even had the whole freaking world in her hands! But that night, everything changed. Something seemed out of the ordinary to her. Suddenly she found herself confronted by a demon. The demon asked her what she was doing on the road, and the woman answered, 'I am trying to find my way home.' The demon decided he would trick the woman, so he said, 'I will show you your way home. Follow me.' The woman did so, and soon they entered a cemetery. The woman realized the demon had tricked her. She spoke to the demon about this. The demon just threw back his head and cackled. 'Yes, I know,' said the demon. 'I led you here so that I could kill you.' The demon encased itself with fire and took out its flaming scythe. It cut the woman's head off. It is unknown if the story is true, but if you ask me, it means something. I believe _I _am the demon. And _Batgirl _is the woman. I will kill her, and you all will kill the heroes who have wronged you in the past! The Justice League will fall, and when it does, we will be there! We will win!"


	4. Dinner

**CHAPTER FOUR: DINNER**

In the Watchtower, Dick Grayson sat on his bed, thinking about all the past events in his life. He attempted to get the bad ones out, such as the death of his parents, but it wasn't very easy.

Suddenly he heard a knock on the door. He opened it and found himself looking at a kid with red hair and freckles.

"Hi, I'm Wally West," he said. He held out his hand. "I'm one of the Flash's sidekicks."

Dick shook his hand. "I'm Dick Grayson," he said. "I'm one of Batman's sidekicks. Nightwing is my other name."

"No kidding?" Wally said. "That's really cool! I always wanted to meet Batman. Do you think I'll get the chance?"

"Maybe," said Dick. "Just to warn you, he's a little salty at the moment. I mean, it's sort of unfortunate."

"Why is that?"

"One of his other sidekicks, Batgirl, came on today, or so I've heard. He wasn't expecting her to do so, and it made him a little angry. I don't know if he's gotten over it, but knowing him, he won't be getting over it for quite some time," Dick explained. "I hold a little animosity towards him, you see. He, uh, kind of took her on as a sidekick without telling me, and it was sort of a problem."

"What, was she your girlfriend or something?" Wally taunted. Then his eyes widened a little. "Uh, sorry, I'm one of those types of people. I like to joke around a lot, and sometimes that gets me into a lot of trouble."

Dick laughed. "It's okay. I do that, too. I mean, I did a little more when I was younger. But yeah, she was my girlfriend, and I wanted her to always be safe. But when I found out he'd taken her on, I was a little angry. I forgave him about two weeks later, but some of the animosity is still there. So what about you?"

"Well, I'm actually the nephew of the Flash's girlfriend," said Wally. "I once went to the lab where Flash gained his powers, and the freak accident that gave him his powers happened again, this time hitting me. It was so weird, what had happened. The Flash was a little freaked out, and he blamed himself for that, but now I'm just like him, but I'm a little slower. Ah well, I guess you can't always get what you want."

Dick and Wally sat in awkward silence for a few minutes, and it was soon broken by the sound of knocking on the door. It opened, and Dick smiled brightly when he saw Tim Drake standing there.

"Hey Dick," he greeted. "It's been a couple of days."

He was wearing his normal brown jacket with a red shirt and blue jeans. On his shoulder was a green duffle bag.

"It sure has," Dick said. "I'm glad you're here. By the way, who allowed you to join the Justice League in the first place?"

Tim looked at him strangely. "I was told by Barbara that everyone allowed me," he explained. "Except for Bats. Of course he wouldn't."

"He didn't even know about your or Barbara coming," Dick explained. "It's the first time in probably forever that he didn't know something. It really surprises me. Ah well."

Another knock sounded on their door. It opened to show Batman standing there. He saw Tim, but did not smile, which neither Dick nor Tim were surprised by.

"Can we help you?" Dick asked.

"Dinner is in thirty minutes," he said. "You need to wear your suit and mask."

And he walked away without another word. When the door had closed again, Tim turned back to Dick. "Why in the heck is he so salty?" he asked.

"He never knew you or Barbara were going to be here. You know how he is. But let's go ahead and get ready. If we're going to be sitting by each other at the dinner table, I'm letting Barbara sit next to him."

"According to Flash, since we're new recruits, we'll be sitting together. He and Batman will most likely be with the other founding members of the Justice League. It's just normal, I guess."

Dick nodded and took out his Nightwing costume. He wondered what it would be like to be wearing it around so many other superheroes. Some of them, such as Superman and Wonder Woman, were his heroes. While he'd met Superman, as well as Supergirl, he'd never met Wonder Woman before.

There was another knock that sounded at the door, and when it opened, Dick found Barbara standing there, already wearing her Batgirl costume; but her mask was off. She suddenly saw Wally and her eyes widened, but Dick said to her, "Don't worry, you can trust him. He's my roommate anyway, so he'd find out sooner or later." He smiled at her. "It's real good to see you again, Babs."

Barbara smiled. "Call me 'Babs' again, and the first night we're out in the field, or even in training, you might find a yellow batarang up your butt. But otherwise, it's good to see you, too."

She kept smiling brightly. Dick looked behind her and saw Kara A.K.A. Supergirl, as well as another girl with blond hair. However, no one besides Kara and Barbara knew her.

"It's good to see you again, Kara," said Tim.

"You too, Tim," she said. "I can just guess how angry Batman was about learning you were going to be joining us, right?"

"Yeah, and as usual, it wasn't pretty," Tim said. "But the good news is, we're able to be together all the time. I wonder why he can't see that."

"Don't worry, Tim," Barbara assured him. "When I arrived, he did the same darn thing, and it annoyed me so darn much. But we'll have to deal with it. Now come on, let's get to dinner. It's almost time." She slipped her mask on. She then walked into their room to hug both Dick and Tim. "I've missed you guys a lot."

"It's only been three days since we last saw each other," Tim reminded her, although she already knew.

"Yes, but it felt like a whole lot longer, to be honest," she explained. "But I don't care now. We're together again, and even with Batman being a jerk, we can return to being a normal family. As long as my father does not realize my disappearance from Earth, I think I'm good."

Dick and Tim laughed. Barbara laughed with them, and then walked over to Wally. "Your name is?" she asked.

"Wally West," he said. Dick and the others saw that he was looking her over, but Barbara herself did not notice such a thing. "I am the Flash's sidekick."

"I'm Barbara Gordon," she replied. Then she turned again to Dick and Tim. "Get your costumes on and meet us in the dining hall. If you get lost, then wait for Superman. He said he'll escort you. Kara already knows the way, so we're good." She looked over to where Cassie stood. "Oh, and by the way, this is Cassie. She's Wonder Woman's sidekick Wonder Girl."

Cassie nervously waved at them. Dick noticed her costume was a red top with long sleeves that bore the same "W" symbol as he knew Wonder Woman had on her costume and exposed her midriff, with bracelets that resembled Wonder Woman's, and a red skirt. She wore red boots.

Barbara, Kara, and Cassie left to make their way to the dinner hall. Dick and Tim hurried to the bathroom in their room and changed into their respective Nightwing and Robin costumes.

Once done, they found Wally in their room dressed in his Kid Flash costume. Seeing this, they decided to start on their way to the dinner hall. When they were about to leave their room, there was yet another knock on the door, and when it opened once more, Superman was standing there.

"It's been a while, Tim," were the first words out of his mouth. "It's been a while since I last saw you, Wally," he added to Kid Flash. "If you want, we can start on our way to the dinner hall." When he saw the young men nod, he told them, "Then let's go."

As they made their way down the hall, they began talking about how their training would be going.

"Knowing Batman's idea of training, it's probably going to be real hard. But if anyone else on the team is a training leader, then we'll take it easy at first, and then attempt to follow up on that later on," he explained. "Do you understand?"

They all replied with, "Yes," and finished speaking of it, they continued on toward the dinner hall.

When they entered the dinner hall, Dick, Tim, and Wally couldn't help but let their mouths drop open.

The room was huge—they guessed it was to accomodate all the superheroes—with many different tables pointing parallel toward the main table, which had seven seats: one for each founding member of the Justice League.

The other six founding members were already there, including Batman: Wonder Woman, Flash, Green Lantern (Hal Jordan), Martian Manhunter, and Aquaman.

Superman showed Nightwing, Robin, and Kid Flash to the table where Batgirl, Supergirl, and Wonder Girl sat.

Once they were seated, Nightwing noticed there was already food in front of him. He wondered if he should eat it or not. It was roast beef with chicken soup, and water to drink.

As soon as Superman arrived at the main table with the other founding members, he said out loud, "I am sorry to have kept you waiting for so long, but now I am here, and as all of you know, it is time to eat. But before I do so, I would like to let you know that tonight is a very special night. We have new recruits. I will announce their names later, but for now, let us eat!"

For close to an hour, everyone spoke and ate. Nightwing kept taking glances over to Batgirl, as well as Batman. He also noticed he and the other new initiates were being glanced at by the other League members.

_It feels so weird to be here, surrounded by so many of the Earth's mightiest heroes—no, that sounds like something someone's already said—the _universe's _greatest heroes! I can't wait to be one of them!_

He looked over to Batgirl, who seemed very nervous, and he couldn't blame her. He was sure it had to do with Batman, or even possibly with her father. But he let it slide, then returned to eating.

After at least an hour had passed, Superman stood up once more and began to speak to the Justice League once more. "Now, could I please have everyone's attention?" he said. The whole dinner hall quieted down. "Thank you. Now, as I said before, we have new recruits for the team. The first is my own cousin, Supergirl." Supergirl got to her feet and went to join him. "Then we have Nightwing, one of Batman's sidekicks." Nightwing did the same as Supergirl. And then Robin was called up. And then Kid Flash, leaving Batgirl and Wonder Girl. Finally, Wonder Girl was called up, leaving only Batgirl. Nightwing could tell she was very nervous. "And last, but most certainly not least, we have Batgirl. All of these recruits have trained with their respective mentors, and now they will train together to join us as new members of the League. Do not ask for their identities before we reveal them to you, please. Now, if you wish, you can remain where you are and eat, or if you wish, you may leave. This dinner is now adjourned. Thank you." He smiled.

Now that they were allowed to leave, some of the League did so, but many stayed to congratulate Nightwing and the others. Soon after, Batman got up and went to Batgirl, Nightwing, and Robin. "Follow me," he said. They listened and did so.

Looking back, Batgirl gave Supergirl an apologetic look. Supergirl just smiled and nodded.

"So what do you want?" asked Nightwing.

"We need to talk," Batman said.

"About what?" Batgirl asked. "Does it have to do with me and Tim?"

"Yes," he answered gruffly. "I didn't want either of you on this team for a reason. But you went against that."

"I did it for a reason!" Batgirl exclaimed. "I said this before, and I'll say it again! I want us to be closer! It sucks not being near your family all the time! You guys are my main family, and I just wanted to be by you guys! Is that so wrong, Batman?"

He was about to answer when there was a sudden ringing sound. Batgirl reached into her utility belt and took out her phone. She answered it with a simple, "Hello?" After listening for a minute, she handed it to Batman and said, "It's for you."


	5. The Cat and the Rat

**Please note that the version of the POV character is much different than the character you see in movies, TV, and the comics. The character you see here is a version I made up, as I was into changing characters from movies and TV and comics a lot back when I did so, and so I brought her here now.**

* * *

><p><span><strong>CHAPTER FIVE: THE CAT AND THE RAT<strong>

Selina Kyle hurried through the alley. She was glad she was not being chased tonight by any thugs, which would be the first time in three days. She was very adventurous, something that got her into trouble a lot.

To her, Gotham was like a playground. She was the little black cat that ran around, getting close to danger every step she took. After realizing that was what she truly was, she took on the identity of Catwoman, which included donning a black vinyl costume and a whip, and although she did not truly protect the city, she was happy to know there was a family that protected the city, as well. While she had at first gotten in trouble quite a lot with them, she now counted the Bat-Family as a part of her family. But she knew how careful she now needed to be.

Three years ago, she had fought a mind-controlled Batgirl, and although she succeeded in taking her down, she'd taken her mask off by accident, allowing her to see the girl behind the mask. She was found by Batman and Robin not long after. Seeing what had happened, Batman forced Selina to promise to never tell anyone, to which she agreed. She had not meant to do such a thing, but she understood the danger of that possibility, with as many villains as there were in the city they lived in.

_I'll make sure to never tell anyone, _Selina thought to herself. _I'm pretty much a friend of the Bat-Family now, so I'm sure they trust me. Well, maybe not Batman, but Batgirl and Robin surely do. Maybe even Nightwing…but I'm not sure about him. It doesn't matter. All that matters to me is the fact that I'm trusted around here._

Selina had vowed something long ago: never steal from the poor. She believed it was better to give to those who could not fend for themselves. After becoming Catwoman, she'd decided that not long after, drawing her inspiration for such a thing from _Robin Hood _and a video game she'd played when she was ten, _Sly Cooper_.

Coming up with her name had proven difficult for her at first, but deciding to not follow in Batgirl's footsteps, despite how much she'd inspired Selina to go out into the world in such a way, she called herself Catwoman instead. It fit her well now, she believed, as she was twenty-four-years old, three years older than Batgirl. Everybody had the right to make their own decisions, she believed, and that was that.

Selina hurried to a fire escape, preparing to climb up to the top of the building. It was beginning to rain, and although she knew she would not get her hair wet, thanks to her cowl covering all of her head, she wanted to go home and at least get some sleep. Unlike Batman, she could not go more than three days without sleep.

Suddenly she heard someone moaning. She wondered what or who it belonged to, but also knew to be careful. She remembered one of her first missions with the Bat-Family after gaining Batgirl's trust, she'd been captured by Scarecrow due to a stupid act of believing she could take down a group of thugs (one of whom had been the villain in disguise) without help, and was forced to experience visions of everyone she knew and either loved or liked dying. Fortunately she'd been snapped out of it, and Scarecrow had been captured.

The moaning continued, and soon Selina could not take it any longer. She looked behind a trash can, and then an air condition unit. She found nothing behind either of them.

But then she heard it again, and she saw a foul-smelling dumpster. She quickly looked behind it, hoping to take her head away from there quick, but when she took her look, she gasped. A man was laying there, holding his chest hard. A mask lay near his feet. Selina took a look at it and realized it belonged to the Ratcatcher. She looked at the man again. "Flannegan?" she asked. The man slowly turned his head to look at her. "Otis Flannegan? That is your name, correct? You're the Ratcatcher, aren't you?"

Flannegan slowly nodded his head, and then groaned once more. Selina knew what needed to be done. She wondered who could have done such a thing to Flannegan. Despite most of the villains being completely evil, Flannegan had some sort of a normal mind beneath his Ratcatcher persona. Slowly Selina took her phone out of her utility belt around her waist and dialed a number. She heard the phone ringing on the other end. She hoped they would pick up soon.

"Hello?" came the voice of Barbara Gordon a minute later.

"Batgirl, is that you?" Selina asked. "Look, I need your help. I found Otis Flannegan here. The Ratcatcher, I mean. He's badly injured, and I can tell that only by hearing him moan. Please, give the phone to Batman!"

She heard on the other end, "It's for you," said by Batgirl. And then Selina heard, "What is it?"

"Batman, it's Catwoman. I found the Ratcatcher! Otis Flannegan. He's badly injured, and I think he could be dying! I need help."

"We're on our way," came Batman's gruff voice once more.

Selina sighed with relief. She heard the phone hang up, and knowing they would be coming soon enough. She hurried back over to Flannegan. She dragged him out from behind the dumpster and tried to get him to sit up at least a little. At first, when he did not do so, she believed it was only because his ribs might be broken. But then she saw his left hand slip off his chest, and she saw the true reason for the groaning and why he couldn't sit up: there was a dark splotch of blood there, and it seemed to still be seeping through. She wondered how much blood he'd lost already. She put her hands on that spot, attempting to stop the bleeding. She felt the warm liquid welling up even through the think vinyl gloves.

"I didn't…want…this," Flannegan said, his breath coming out in short, rugged gasps. "I was…preparing…to…retire from…this terri…ble life." He coughed, and strands of salt-and-pepper hair fell over his face.

Selina continued pressing on the wound, even though the blood flow wouldn't stop. She wondered how much more blood he could lose. It was another thirty minutes before she heard someone calling out.

"Catwoman?" came a familiar female voice. Selina sighed with relief, as it was Batgirl. She saw her appear. At first Batgirl smiled at Selina, but her look became that of terror as she saw the Ratcatcher laying on the ground. "What in the name of God happened?"

"I don't know," Selina admitted. "This is really scary for me."

"Let me take a look," came the familiar gruff voice of the Dark Knight. Selina happily got to her feet. Batman came into her line of vision, along with Robin and Nightwing. Batman got to his knees and pressed on the wound.

"What happened?" he asked Selina.

"I came over here, hoping to find someplace where I could get out of the rain, and I found him like this, moaning, behind a dumpster," Selina explained.

Batman grunted, and then asked Flannegan, "Do you know of anything that's happened?"

"No," Flannegan said. "All I…remem…ber…is…_him._"

"Him? Who's him?" Batgirl inquired.

"_Him,_" Flannegan said again. "He…was…so terrible…I could…not…take it…" His voice trailed off yet again.

"Who are you speaking of, Flannegan?" Batman asked.

"_Him,_" Flannegan said once more. "The…one…we…_f…Sc…_" His voice trailed off for the last time, and then suddenly the whole group could hear a beeping sound. Everyone except for Batman wondered what it was.

His eyes widened, and then he ordered, "Take cover!"

He jumped out of the way, as did Batgirl and Nightwing. Robin and Selina had been out of the way already. But it didn't matter.

Flannegan's head exploded like a ripe, juicy tomato. Blood and brain matter flew everywhere, hitting everyone. Batgirl looked at the blood on her costume, and then ran behind a trash can to throw up. Selina had always known her to have a weak stomach.

"Good God, what happened?" Batgirl asked. "What caused his head to explode?"

"It had to be nanites lined with explosives," Batman said. He walked over to Flannegan's body and picked it up. "I'm taking the body back with us to the Watchtower to examine it."

Selina looked at Batman. "You're welcome," she said. He said nothing back. Batgirl came over to her. Selina saw Nightwing and Robin waving good-bye to her, which she returned. Then she turned her attention back to Batgirl.

"He's not in the best mood," she said.

"When is he ever?" Selina reminded her.

"Good point. But it's worse today because he wasn't expecting me or Robin to join the Justice League," Batgirl explained.

"Oh, congratulations," Selina said without smiling. "I'm sorry, I'm meaning to smile, but I'm just ready to get out of here."

"I understand," Batgirl said. "I need to wash this crap off me."

Selina leapt onto a wall and climbed up to the first level of a fire escape. "I'll see you later, Batgirl!" she said. She waved, as did Batgirl. "Bye!"

And as Selina leapt over some rooftops on her way to get home, she never noticed the shadowy figure watching her with one good eye and one blind eye. "Another nuisance," they said as they watched her, and then walked away.


End file.
